in the war they fought and wonin the land forever gonea thousand dreams and sacrificesfor the flag we've left todaycome on my boy start over the dayburried again tyranny downand come on come on my brothers we'll shinelike a bullet always tells what's rightwhen the sunrise come slaps you hard you lazy cuntget a job get a life be something for your landtime has come you lazy cunt!

Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind ?Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and auld lang syne ?For auld lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne,we'll take a cup of kindness yet, for auld lang syne.

"Auld Lang Syne" Originally is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 its traditional use being to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight. It is also sung at funerals, graduations and as a farewell or ending to other occasions.

"Lazy Cunt" Originally written and played by Rebellion Rose to kick all lazy people's asses to remind them 'bout "Struggle" of our previous heroes who has fought, suffered, cried and Dead for our country's freedom! now, get your ass useful for beloved homeland, you lazy cunt!!!

The Tosspints "Have You Been Drinking?" East Grand Record Co.Release date: 4 June 2013Running time: 42:02, 12 tracks

The Tosspints are Don Zuzula (guitars, banjo, mandolin, lead vocals), Zak Zuzula (bass, backing vocals and lead vocals on two songs) and John Johnson (drums, gang vocals). “Have You Been Drinking?” is their third release.

There are a couple of standards, a fast-paced rendition of “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye” and an even faster version of “Come Out Ye Black and Tans”. Apart from those tracks, all the numbers are self-penned songs. There is a ska song with guest Andy Reed on organ, “Shoot at All the Cops” and Flogging Molly’s quietest moments are present on “Eleanor”(another song featuring Andy Reed on piano). However, most of the numbers have a Johnny Cash or The Men They Couldn’t Hang early albums sound. IMHO, the most interesting songs among these would be “Our Last Breath” (the song with the folkiest sound) and “Train Robber Song”.

Anyway, my favourite numbers are “Your Name” (a track with a Stanfields sound), “Blood and Whiskey” (a song in the Dropkick Murphys/Street Dogs vein) and the opening number “Genocide is Painless” (with a beginning that reminds me of Cranberries “Zombie” ).

2013 has been a fantastic year for the Spanish Celtic punk scene. Bastards on Parade, Brutus’ Daughters and The Fatty Farmers have made the different best of 2013 lists (Paddy Rock Radio, Celtic Folk Punk and More, Irish Punk and Shite’n’Onions). All of them have released their second albums in 2013; however, I would like to draw your attention to another kick-ass Spanish album that has been released at the end of 2013: “Seguir en pie”, the debut album by 13Krauss.

The bagpipes punk band from Zaragoza delivered a digital single at the beginning of 2013. “Atlántida” was a song that was immediately loved by a bunch of fans from all over the world. The follow-up has been a full album that has been issued sooner than expected. In fact, the official release party took place at their home town last December 5th. I got my copy a couple of days before closing my “best of” list and after some spins I decided that the album should make the list. Now, after having worn out the disc, I’m sure that they deserved a higher place.

The band was formed in 2012, but the band’s sound and music are really tight. Obviously, there are some dark sides. The lyrics deal with friendship, sadness, fights, boozers, beer … and sometimes they are a little bit basic. Moreover, only one song is sung in English. However, the bright sides are bigger. First of all, there are no covers. Secondly, there are no traditional numbers. Thirdly, the influences are clear, but the band’s own stamp is present on every single track. And, finally, there is an instrumental tune, a kind of number that I really appreciate on any Celtic punk album.

13Krauss are Bodi (lead vocals), Mario (acoustic guitar), David (pipes, tin whistle, mandolin), Gabi (accordion), Miguel (electric guitar) Buesa (bass) and David (drums). Even if they are The Real McKenzies fans, the album is closer to Dropkick Murphys. “XIII”, the opening track is the instrumental on the album. A short number with different parts, an acoustic beginning with accordion and tin whistle, then an electric part and finally the peak featuring the bagpipes.

The following song is one of the hottest numbers on the album, “Seguir en pie”. Excellent gang vocals on this bagpipe punk song à la Bastards on Parade.

“Mejor postor” is another outstanding song with both The Real MacKenzies (the beginning) and Dropkick Murphys influences.

“Little Timmy” is sung in Spanish, even if the title is in English, and showcases amazing pipes and accordion, together with a catchy chorus. By the way, there is an error on the tracklist. “Volveremos” is track no. 5, not 6, and "Little Timmy" is track no. 6, not 5 as stated on the back cover. The leprechaun pipers did it again (remember that the same clerical error occurred on The Real McKenzies “10.000 Shots” and The Black Tartan Clan “The Loyal Men” albums

The next number is “Insane” and yes, this is the song that is sung in English. Once again, a fast-paced song with a sing-along chorus and an accordion ska part with a Fiddler’s Green twist.

Dropkick Murphy’s shadow can be found on “Camino a seguir”, a slower song, the suitable transition to the new version of “Atlántida”.

13Krauss have been able to deliver a top-notch album. “Seguir en pie” is clearly a strong album. If 13Krauss are able to open their lyrics to new topics and decide to sing more songs in English (like Brutus’ Daughters do), they could become as popular as Bastards on Parade at a worldwide level. Ah, and just a final comment: if you prefer vinyl to CDs, “Seguir en pie” has been released on vinyl too.

Usually we have to wait around two years to get a new album from the band we love. Fortunately, some bands release EPs the year after having issued an album and then the wait is not too long. Canadian oi! and folk band The Scally Cap Brats have made our holidays happier than expected with their brand new EP "Don't Look Back": a couple of oi! anthems with amazing sing-along chorus ("Barry Square", "You Never Know"), a mandolin driven catchy song ("Dress Sharp, Drink Hard") and a back to basics folk-punk song ("The Shiner's War").

Remember that the physical copies are limited to 50, but digital copies can be bought from Bandcamp too. Go ahead and grab a copy!

The guys and girl from Cleveland released a two track single just before St. Patrick's Day. I guess that ALL of you have already sing-along "Hold the Penny", since we posted the video for the A-side when it was uploaded to YouTube.

Craic's previous EP was at the top of our list in 2011 and this single is the evidence that they are not the future of Celtic punk, but the present. The band is tight and the sound and production are top-notch.

"Hold the Penny" is the perfect A-side: a fast-paced catchy song that runs less than 3 minutes. The band's stamp can be heard all along the song: kick-ass tin whistle, brilliant banjo, fantastic sharp guitar and excellent vocals.

The B-side is a cover of Ewan MacColl's classic song "Dirty Old Town". Craic's rendition has the suitable flow: a quieter beginning, an electric burst and a smooth end.

After having enjoyed this gem, I'm looking forward to listening to the band's debut album. Craic's "Hold the Penny/Dirty Old Town" single made no. 7 at our recent EPs/single list only because the recording has two tracks. If they have added another original number, I'm sure that they would have reached the Top3. Come on, go to your favourite e-retailer and buy the two tracks!

The Mahones' Christmas song featuring very special guest Felicity Hamer (Filly and the Flops/United Steelworkers of Montreal) on vocals.

Finny McConnell, singer of The Mahones, wrote this song about his wife, Katie Kaboom (coincidentally also of The Mahones). A love song, the video is made up of a bunch of McConnell home Christmas movies. Enjoy, barf, drink more whiskey, whatever.

Wishing you all a very happy holiday season, from our families to yours.

1) Even if this post is titled as “the best of”, this is not a competition, but a sort of a game. I prefer to say that, IMHO, this is the list of the most enjoyable albums of 2013.

2) Please remember that it’s a list of albums, not a list of bands.

3) I always intend to push new bands. However, I feel that the best album is The Tossers "The Emerald City" and even if they are an old (an essential) band, they deserve it.

4) I have rated only the albums that have been received for review purposes and/or that have been shared for free by the bands. Albums on streaming have not been rated.

5) Live albums have not been taken into account.

6) Albums without original songs (that is, covers albums) have not been taken into account

7) "Best of" or compilations have not been taken into account, since they are old material.

8) Unfortunately I have not been able to rate some albums that could have made the list, since a copy never arrived :-(

9) Nevertheless, I'm very happy with the list. It's been extremely difficult to rate the albums, because most of them were very good. In order to decide the final order I have had to take into account different things: original songs, covers, production, packaging, artwork, liner notes, credits ... In fact, an album is more than a collection of songs.

10) This is really a global Celtic punk/rock albums list. There are albums sung in English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Czech and Polish.

11) I intended to post a Top25, but then a lot of excellent albums wouldn't be on the list. So I have decided to extend the list to 35 albums.

This is the final list: 35 albums from all over the world:

23 from Europe (5 from the UK, 4 from Spain, 2 from the Czech Republic, 2 from Germany, 2 from Hungary, 2 from Switzerland, 1 from Belgium, 1 from France, 1 from The Netherlands, 1 from Poland, 1 from Sweden, 1 from Ukraine)11 from North America (8 from the USA and 3 from Canada)1 from Asia (Indonesia)

Reviews of 13Krauss "Seguir en pie" and The Tosspints "Have You Been Drinking" will be posted soon. Stay tuned!

As I have previously said, no best-of/compilations albums have been rated. But, if I were you, I would downloadThe Sunday Punchers "High Tides and B Sides", since it's a kick-ass album

I would like to thank ALL the bands for sending/sharing their music, and specially The Cloves and The Tobacco and Brutus' Daughters for mentioning Celtic Folk Punk and More on their albums liner notes. And obviously all the fans that have sent their leads and heads-up! about new albums. You know who you are.

Finally, a special THANK YOU to Beau from Lexington Field, for their support to every single Celtic punk/rock E-zine and podcast and to all the scene. Thank you Beau for making things easier to the people who write/talk about this kind of bands.

1) Even if this post is titled as “the best of”, this is not a competition, but a sort of a game. I prefer to say that, IMHO, this is the list of the most enjoyable EPs/singles of 2013.

2) Please remember that it’s a list of EPs/singles, not a list of bands.

3) It’s been a little bit difficult to rate every recording, since some of them have only two songs and other recordings have 3, 4, 5 or more songs. Therefore, I’ve tried to give priority to those having more self-penned songs. Then, some singles can be in a lower position only because they have two songs and one of them is a cover. Anyway, they’re kick-ass singles.

4) I have rated only the EPs/singles that have been received for review purposes and/or that have been shared for free by the bands.

So, this is the final list: 20 EPs/singles from all over the world:

9 from Europe (2 from The Netherlands, 2 from Italy, 2 from the UK, 1 from France, 1 from Hungary and 1 from Ukraine)6 from North America (5 from the USA and 1 from Canada)3 from Australasia (Australia)

1 from Africa (South Africa)1 from Asia (Thailand)

Thanks to all the bands for sending their music to Celtic Folk Punk and More

The German band Nobody Knows
cannot take a rest. Max and his bandmates are always active. I would
say that before having finished a project, they are working in the next
one. For them, the term “world music” must be understood in a different
way. They play a modern folk that comes from different sources (Germany,
East Europe, Ireland and Scotland, France, North America ..), but they
pay special attention to the instrumentation, sonority, live shows and, I
guess, to the lyrics.

This time they are offering a new labour
of love about the Holidays. It’s not your usual Christmas song album,
even if a cover of “Jingle Bell Rock” has made the album. Every
small detail is important for these guys and girl: the packaging is as
big as that of a DVD; the artwork makes me think of Sempé’s Le Petit
Nicolas drawings; the selection of songs is a well-balanced mix of
traditional/popular songs and self-penned material; vocal arrangements
are really subtle and the choice of instruments for every song is
excellent.

These are the songs that I enjoy: “Morgen, Kinder”, a song with an American twist whose lyrics are trad. and music by Max and Karl. G.Herring; “Weihnachtliches Idyll”, a brilliant song with xylophone, fiddles and vocals duties shared by Max and Tabi (the girl); “Sleeping Maggie”, another song featuring xylophone and fiddle, slower that the Tannahill Weavers version; and “Oktoberregen” a fantastic song with guitar, fiddle and keyboards. Other interesting number would be “Schneeflöckchen”, a self-penned song in the Manu Chao vein.

Nobody Knows
are a rara avis on the folk rock scene. However, they are always a
refreshing band. Check them out and don’t say that you cannot speak
German. Just listen and enjoy.

Friday, December 13, 2013

"The last time we stepped into the studio was 2006, but now, just for the holidays, we've recorded something new, just for you. It's a cover of Chuck Berry's Christmas classic "Run Rudolph Run" and you can download it for free. Just go HERE and listen, download, share- whatever you like. Rumor has it we'll be doing a few more new songs for a compilation disc to be released next year..."

Do you remember Bodh’aktan? Their debut album was no. 4 at our list last year. It was a kick-ass album whose English version has been recently released. But this is not their sole release in 2013, since they have just issued their second album in French, “Tant qu’il restera du rhum”.

The best words to describe the album are happy and fun. Happy, because happiness is what the fans will feel when they listen to this album. And fun, because that’s what these Quebecer guys offer. They do really enjoy life and music.

Bodh’aktan’s musical approach, that merges La Bottine Souriante and Dropkick Murphys, is stronger than ever. The line-up has been increased from six to seven musicians with the addition of Luc Bourgeois (guitars, bagpipes, mandolin, whistle, bouzouki and vocals) and lyrics and/or music are written by almost all of the band members.

Regarding the songs, there is one French drinking/shanty song (“Le 31 du mois d’Août”), one Matmatah cover ("Lambé An Dro”), a set of tunes ( “Down the Brooms a.ka. Le Set de Balais”, traditional + Jonathan Moorman’s) and a lot of self-penned songs. The list of guests is quite interesting too: Alan Doyle (Great Big Sea) on “Dansez/ Dance Hey!”,Tristan Nihouarn (Matmatah) on “Lambé An Dro”, Yves Lambert (La Bottine Souriante former frontman) on “Trash Tombola” and Choeur Marine on “Le 31 du mois d’Août”.

The opening track is titled “La bouteille est agréable”. It’s a drinking song featuring pipes and fiddle. The perfect example of their blend of traditional Quebecer music and standard Celtic punk/rock.

The next number, “Dancez/Dance Hey!” is a celebration of their Quebecer and Canadian identity. Lyrics are half in English, half in French. A catchy song with amazing fiddle and tin whistle.

“Les fantômes de l’écoutille” it’s a song about a tavern in a harbor where the punters are the ghosts of old sailors. The song has a French twist thanks to the accordion.

The following track is one of the standouts. A passage is inspired by the “Keel Row” strathspey, a tune that every punk rock fan will recognize, as it can be heard on Toy Dolls “The Ashbrooke Launderette” song. The lyrics are modern folk. I mean, the topic seems to be traditional, but I cannot imagine the same end in the XVIIIth century.

No rest for the damned. Track no. 5 is Breton (folk) rock at its best: Bodh’aktan’s rendition of Matmatah’s classic song “Lambé An Dro”. Awesome!

The lads keep on sailing on French waters, since “Salut les disparus” has a French rock flavour too.

“Le 31 du mois d’Août” is another brilliant number. It’s a shanty/drinking song about a French corsair that captured an English frigate. The arrangements are top-notch. If you loved the instrumental sets on the last Mahones album, you’ll love the fiddle and whistle part near the end of the song (in fact, Jonathan Moorman played fiddle on “Angels & Devils”)

And the biggest punk number on the album is reached: “La Racaille”. Great backing vocals, accordion, bass and a fiddle that makes me think of Johnny Cunningham on DKM “The Gang’s All Here”. Lyrics deal with the real power in the world: the banking families, and the sound blends SoCal punk and keupon bands such as Parabellum.

And after a serious topic, the guys deliver a party song: “Hoompa Hoompa Yeah”, a polka song which is fun, fun and more fun.

Their next move is “Trash Tombola”, a song with a gypsy sound about a haunting fiddler. Beware of fiddlers!!!!

The last numbers are “Le Set de Balais” and “La Finale”. The former is a top-notch set of tunes in the Ashley MacIsaac “Devil in the Kitchen” vein and the latter is a slow song. There is a hidden track, a sort of a joke titled “ Le Craw’s”.

Fortunately, the album is not over, since there are a couple of bonus tracks. “La valse d’hier” is the perfect Christmas song and “Au pays des géants” gets a traditional Quebecer treatment.

La Belle Province (Quebec) has a burgeoning Celtic punk/rock scene: Farler’s Fury, Irish Moutarde, Drunken Dogs, The Maggoty Brats … All of them are fantastic bands. However, if you want to enjoy the real Quebecer roots, then your choice should be Bodh’aktan. Bodh’aktan “Tant qu’il restera du rhum” is the best Christmas present for any Celtic punk/rock fan. My advice: buy it now. If you cannot speak French, you can always buy the English version of their debut album. But if I were you, I would pick up this one too.

Latest news from Lexington Field. They have a new song and now it's free.

"Happy Holidays from Lexington Field!We wanted to send you a new song we recorded for the holiday season! It is a bluegrass number called "Cherry Moonshine". We wrote it while we were on our 2013 No Man's Tour driving from Arizona to New Mexico. It is AJ Belluto's first recording as an official member of Lexington Field, and he wrote the main melody on the banjo. It will be up on iTunes in a week or two. In the meantime, here is the mp3 for you guys . Cover by the extremely talented Jose Pimienta (creator of No Man's War, Poor Troubled Life, & Old Dirt Road artwork).

"Cherry Moonshine" is now available for FREE to download for everyone up until Christmas at our online store:

"Tail Light Rebellion, you say? Why Yes. You'll find odd bits of writing, pictures, and of course, poetry set to music. It's what had me down this particular rabbit hole in the first place, after all. And it keeps me bent ever onward to the horizon.

Everything I wrote for The Swaggerin' Growlers started exactly the same way: a pair of heavy boots, an acoustic six string, and my ragged voice, belting out bar room poetry to whoever would listen. The Growlers had many different members over the years, and this one notion has the steady constant: There are many a party where it would just be me, pounding on the floor, singing at the top of my lungs. Those moments are very much a part of me - sacred and real. About the only difference is I've got a couple of drums (Cajons) that I sit and play instead of pounding on the floor. That shit gets hard on your goddamned knees after a while.

This recording is me returning 100% to my roots. For years, I've wanted to put these songs out like this; I've wanted to put them out how I wrote them, as folk songs. They're dirty street folk songs, meant to be played in every living room and basement and bar room possible. Six Strings and Gasoline was the name of my journal; My manic, desperate, and utterly driven attempts to capture all the madness I've been fortune enough to see. It's my attitude on life. So it was only fitting to use it for the name of the album.

Currently, I'm rounding out the last few dates of my first Tail Light Rebellion tour, and it's been a wild and amazing time. I'm truly blown away by the love and support and the dancing and laughter that I've seen on this run. Can't stop, Won't stop.

So? Here it is. Below is a bandcamp link, which does it's x number of free downloads a month, and below that, a pay pal donation button. Download away. If you dig this, toss me a couple of bucks and share it. I've been doing this for something near 10 years now, I just want these songs to be heard. Any money tossed my way will either go to a) keeping me on the road or b) putting this out on Vinyl / Compact Disc / Cassette / 8 Track

Recording Notes:

The music and lyrics on this recording were written by me, Jonny Swagger (Jonathan Natale for all you lawyer types) between the years of 2004-2012. I played every instrument, recorded, mixed, and mastered the audioThis album was recorded in a basement of an apartment building in Hyde Park, Boston, MA from October 1st 2013 to Nov 13th 2013 - Much thanks to the McCarthy clanThis album was mixed and mastered in a wide variety of locations on the road, with notable locations including Griffin Sullivan's House, The Mischief Brew Compound, & The World Famous Milestone, to name a fewASCAP member. All Rights Reserved. Personal use and electronic sharing is permitted, commercial usage or duplication requires licensing. The short of it: Sound wants to be free and shared, but I'll be damned if you make money off my work and I don't."

“Roppongi” is the second EP released in 2013 by the band from Brisbane Fox’n’Firkin. Although the band was recently formed, bassist Max Vass and mandolin player Adrian Kay are not newcomers, since they had formerly played with Sled and Mutiny Bay. I have not said “sadly defunct” bands because I feel that there is a sound and attitude that links all of these bands. In other words, it could be said that Sled and Mutiny Bay are previous incarnations of Max and Adrian's project.

Obviously, Fox’n’Firkin "Roppongi" go one step forward and their Celtic punk rock kicks ass: four mandolin driven anthems, with excellent guitar work and amazing backing vocals. “Over This” is a little bit slower than the other numbers but quite enjoyable, “Roppongi” is an upbeat song with a ska part, “1788” is a Mutiny Bay meets Flatfoot 56 song and “Craddle to the Grave” is the main song on the EP. Remember that the band has recently released a video for this song.

Fox’n’Firkin “Roppongi” is an excellent addition to any Celtic punk collection: Australian folk punk with a pedigree.

The Indulgers were quite active between 200 and 2006. The quintet from Boulder , CO, released 6 albums during that period: “In Like Flynn” (2000), “Tan & Black” (2001), “Celtic Tiger” (2002), “High Road to Heaven” (2002), “Chase the Ghost” (2004) and “Out in the West” (2006). No studio albums were issued after that period, so their brand of Celtic Rock with a Western twist could be new to younger audiences.

Pat Murphy (drums) and Chris Murtaugh (bass) are no longer in the band, but the core of the band is still alive and kicking: songwriters Damien McCarron (vocals, guitar) and Mike Nile (vocals, guitars, tin whistle, mandolin) together with fiddler Renee Fine.

Standouts on the album are the single “Whiskey Tonight”, the instrumental “Doin’ Fine”, the catchy number “Story Rory” and “It’s You” and “Hold on to You”, a couple of tracks with the classic sound of the band.

If you are an old fan of the band, you’ll love “Whiskey Tonight”. And if they are new to you, you’ll appreciate their distinctive sound an attitude.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

The Black Shamrocks are the Band of December. Two of their songs were included in our latest sampler. Those songs were written by the band, but their first EP have some covers. All the tracks can be downloaded for free from Sonicbids (have a look at the bottom to download the tracks).

The band is writing new material for their debut album. We will be talking with them soon, stay tuned for an interview!

The Black Shamrocks have recently completed their first EP with legendary, Grammy Award winning producer, David Z. Containing both studio tracks and live tracks, this EP allows you to discover 4 songs produced in the studio, and 4 songs taken from a recent live show, showing that they do play like you hear on the studio tracks, only better! Hearing their live tracks allows you to experience the energy of the show, as if you were there with your Guinness in hand!Included are the first 2 original tracks from the band, the rebel anthem "We Are The 99!", and "Here's to You, Bartender!", their tribute to that most important Pub employee, the Bartender!